The Villainous Male Sidekick Doesn’t Deserve a Name

"Hmph, how dare you look down on me."

Seeing that Eriri and the others were ignoring him, and even discussing amongst themselves who would deal with him as if they had already secured victory, the traveler's pride was deeply wounded.

It's no surprise he felt this way. Now, possessing power that rivaled even Muzan Kibutsuji, he believed himself to be at the pinnacle of this world. Unlike the timid and paranoid Muzan, he was arrogant, and over time, his arrogance had turned into overconfidence since no one—human or demon—had been able to challenge him.

"Hmph, I don't know how you got here, but now that you've come, you won't be leaving!"

With a cold snort, the traveler, now Upper Moon Zero, decided to stop playing around and capture them all at once, adding them to his collection.

He stretched out his hand, a smug grin on his face, and shouted, "Blood Demon Art: Blood Dance!"

Crimson chains appeared in front of him, extending rapidly toward Eriri and the others. In less than a second, the chains intertwined to form a cage, trapping all six of them inside. Through the gaps in the crisscrossing chains, they could see the traveler's gloating expression.

As the thick, blood-red chains radiated a chilling aura and slowly shifted around them, Chika Fujiwara and Ruri Gokou, both still mere mortals, shuddered. They could feel the icy dread emanating from the chains, piercing their minds.

Although Kanae didn't shiver like the other two, she could tell just how sturdy the chains were. If she were alone, she wouldn't have been confident about breaking free from this cage.

"So, this is his Blood Demon Art? Let me see if I can cut through these chains."

Kanae's eyes gleamed as she unsheathed her Nichirin Blade, taking a deep breath to adjust her breathing.

"Flower Breathing, Fifth Form: Peonies of Futility!"

Kanae swung her sword at high speed, delivering nine consecutive slashes from four different angles, all aimed at a single point on one of the chains. The slashes formed arcs like peony petals in full bloom.

Though it was nine slashes, only one sound of impact rang out, a testament to Kanae's lightning-fast strike.

Unfortunately, even after nine strikes focused on a single point, the chain remained unbroken. The most she managed was to push the chain outward a bit, only for it to snap back into place the next second as if nothing had happened.

"Looks like it didn't work..." Kanae felt disheartened that her full-strength attack couldn't even scratch one of the chains, lamenting her own lack of power.

Eriri, noticing the look on Kanae's face, easily understood her thoughts. She gently took Kanae's lowered left hand and gave it a reassuring squeeze. "It's okay. After you get the points from this mission, you'll definitely be strong enough to deal with this."

"Mhm, I'm fine," Kanae smiled warmly in return, squeezing Eriri's hand back.

Although Kanae's attack hadn't worked, it was quite beautiful to watch. This immediately caught the attention of Chika Fujiwara and Ruri Gokou, who were both wide-eyed with excitement.

"Wow, Kanae! That move was gorgeous! You made flowers appear with your sword—how does that even work?"

"Yeah, yeah! Can you teach me too?" Ruri Gokou nodded eagerly, her eyes shining as she looked at Kanae.

"Of course! But learning Breathing Techniques is tough, you know."

"That's fine, I want to try!" Ruri Gokou nodded determinedly.

Chika Fujiwara also chimed in enthusiastically, saying she wanted to learn Flower Breathing too. Kanae couldn't help but smile at the two girls' excitement.

Meanwhile, Upper Moon Zero, outside the cage, noticed Kanae's actions and sneered, his tone dripping with arrogance. "Heh, don't bother. Once you've been captured by my Blood Dance, there's no escape. You might as well give up."

With another snort, he shouted again, "Contract!"

Instantly, the countless chains in the air began to tighten, aiming to bind all six of them inside. But the moment the chains came within a meter of Eriri and the others, they halted, unable to advance further.

"What the... blocked?" Upper Moon Zero was stunned, the smug expression vanishing from his face as shock replaced it.

No matter how much he tried to push the chains forward, they couldn't move an inch closer to Eriri and the group.

As frustration began to overwhelm him, Eriri's sweet, clear voice rang out from inside the cage: "Is this it? Really? You didn't seriously think some cheap parlor tricks could hold us, did you? Surely not, right?"

The sarcastic, mocking tone made Upper Moon Zero's face flush with anger. Veins bulged on his forehead as his teeth clenched audibly.

"Y-You arrogant brat!" he shouted, his voice filled with rage.

Furious, he no longer cared about capturing them alive. All he wanted now was to kill the person humiliating him. Without hesitation, he launched his next attack.

"Blood Demon Art: Blood Spears!"

At his command, the chains around Eriri and the others halted, and countless sharp blood-red spikes emerged from them, densely packed and covering the sky. Anyone with trypophobia would have fainted at the sight.

Even without a phobia, the sheer number of spikes was enough to make Eriri and the others feel uncomfortable, with goosebumps rising on their skin.

But, once again, the spikes stopped a meter away from Eriri's group, just like the chains. Despite the spikes being sharp enough to pierce even the toughest metals, they were completely ineffective here.

To make matters worse for Upper Moon Zero, he still had no idea what was stopping his attacks. His frustration was growing by the second.

From inside the cage of chains and spikes, Eriri's voice echoed again: "Alright, enough playing around. Time to send you on your way."

The next moment, the chains and spikes vanished without warning, disintegrating into nothingness. Eriri and the others stood unharmed in the same spot.

"This... this can't be real... no way..." Upper Moon Zero muttered, eyes wide with disbelief. He repeated the phrase like a broken record, his mind unable to process what had just happened.

In desperation, he unleashed every single technique the system had granted him, pouring all his power into his attacks.

"Blood Demon Art: Blood Flames!"

"Blood Demon Art: Blood Explosion!"

"Blood Demon Art: Blood Asura!"

But it was all in vain. Just like before, every attack vanished the moment it approached Eriri and her group, leaving Kanae and the others watching in awe while Upper Moon Zero's heart filled with dread.

He had once believed himself to be the undisputed ruler of this world, second only to Muzan Kibutsuji. But now, Eriri stood before him like an insurmountable wall, and the difference was crushing.

When all the power granted by his system proved useless, the deep-rooted inferiority complex that had been buried inside him began to resurface.

He faltered. He was afraid.

"Is this it? Got any other tricks? Go ahead and use them all," Eriri teased, raising a finger to beckon him forward with a smirk.

To everyone's surprise, Upper Moon Zero suddenly dropped to his knees before them.

"Ladies, I was wrong, I truly was. Please forgive me! I was forced into this... I'll never dare to challenge you again. Please, spare me!"

Cowering on the ground, his face twisted in fear, the once-proud Upper Moon Zero now looked utterly pathetic.

But Eriri's next words crushed the last bit of hope he had left.

"How is that my problem? I don't care why you did it. All I care about is killing you, and that's it. Got it?"

"N-No... you can't do this..."

Upper Moon Zero shook his head frantically, his voice trembling as he spoke, tears streaming down his face. Overcome by the fear of death, he let out a desperate cry and turned to flee. His speed was impressive, disappearing from their sight in an instant.

Though he had escaped from Eriri and the others, he didn't dare stop running. His mind was consumed by fear.

This was his unique escape technique, which drained his blood energy in exchange for speed. It would weaken him afterward, but he had never imagined he'd need to use it.

Back at the spot where they stood, Eriri and the others remained motionless, watching him flee without concern. Arifureta and the others, well aware of Eriri's abilities, didn't worry at all. Only Ruri Gokou seemed confused as she glanced at Eriri.

"Huh? You're not chasing him? You're just going to let him go?"

"Don't worry, let him run for a bit longer," Eriri chuckled, patting Ruri Gokou on the head.

Several minutes later, Upper Moon Zero finally came to a stop, having run more than twenty kilometers from the small town, now deep in the wilderness.

He collapsed to the ground, panting heavily, his clothes drenched in blood from the energy he'd expended.

"Damn it... I lost so much power. I'll have to devour so many people to recover... What a waste." He cursed under his breath, glancing around to ensure he hadn't been followed. Breathing a sigh of relief.

He wiped his brow, saying, "Phew... at least I managed to survive."

"Oh? Is that so?"

A teasing voice echoed from nearby, instantly making Upper Moon Zero's skin crawl. His heart froze as he whipped his head around.

Standing not far away, right in front of him, were Eriri and the others, just like before. They hadn't moved from the position they held in the small town. The only thing that had changed was the scenery surrounding them.

There were no hanging lanterns here, but the moonlight was bright enough to illuminate the area, making the surrounding wilderness clearly visible to everyone except Eriri and Arifureta.

Upper Moon Zero, staring at them with wide eyes, finally understood. They had never intended to let him go. His escape was nothing more than a joke to them, a twisted game.

He now realized that death was inevitable. It had been the moment they appeared. Despite this, the fear of death clung to him like a vice. Trembling, he collapsed to the ground, pleading and weeping in desperation.

"Please... please don't kill me! I was wrong, I know that now! I beg for your mercy!" He groaned pathetically, tears and snot covering his face as he groveled before Eriri and her companions.

Eriri, visibly unimpressed, sighed in disappointment. "Tch, boring. I thought you might at least put up a bit more of a fight."

With a mere thought, she effortlessly erased the terrified Upper Moon Zero from existence. There was no need to even lift a finger—no dramatic explosion, no scream of agony—he simply ceased to exist.

The mission was over.

[Ding! Mission complete. Arifureta (group leader) has earned 2000 points. Flower Hashira has earned 2000 points. Chika Fujiwara has earned 2000 points. Ashen Witch has earned 2000 points. Fallen Angel Black Cat has earned 2000 points.]

The group chat exploded with activity as the announcement of the successful mission and point allocation rolled in. Chika Fujiwara, Ruri Gokou, and the others were overjoyed with the influx of points, while other members who hadn't been selected could only look on in envy, lamenting their luck.

However, shortly after, Eriri received a personal notification from the system.

[Ding! A primary system has been detected. Would you like to recycle it?]

Eriri blinked in surprise but quickly understood. Of course, a traveler would come equipped with a cheat system. It wasn't exactly unexpected.

"Recycle it," she thought silently.

[Ding! Supreme Demon King System recycled. You have earned 100,000 points.]

"Wow, a primary-level system is worth this much?" Eriri thought, amused as she glanced at her updated points balance. It turned out that the real reward wasn't the mission but the system recycling.

She quickly shared her windfall in the group chat.

[Eriri: Ahem, no need for me to say much. Just look at the picture. System Recycle Screenshot]